North Jersey Fencer Wins Olympic Gold With Team USA, Making History

NORTH JERSEY — A North Jersey native helped make history in women's foil fencing, as part of a quartet celebrating Team USA's first gold medal in Olympic competition.

Jacqueline Dubrovich — who has ties to Morris, Passaic, and Essex counties — joined Lauren Scruggs, Lee Kiefer, and Princeton's Maia Weintraub on the podium Thursday at the Grand Palais.

After losing her individual match this week, she returned to the piste as the American fencers held off a late surge from Italy to win 45-39.

This is the second Olympic appearance for Dubrovich, who turned 30 on July 18. She grew up in Riverdale and attended Pompton Lakes High School, graduated from Columbia University in 2016, and then settled in Cedar Grove.

Dubrovich said she is a proud New Jersey native during a recent interview with the Shop Morris County website, also saying has enjoyed her time in the Olympic Village and sharing the excitement with her three teammates.

"Fencing is typically an individual sport, but the added component of the team event makes it really special to be able to share these experiences with my friends, and these are memories we will have for a lifetime," she said.

The U.S. now has four fencing medals at the Paris Olympics and two gold medals in fencing at the same Olympics for the first time, as well as that first-ever team gold.

Lee Kiefer also won two individual gold medals in Paris, making her the the first American fencer to win three golds at the Games. It was an all-American affair for the individual competition, as she defeated teammate Lauren Scruggs to secure back-to-back gold.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.